r- 



b^ 



ALFRED MOORE SCALES. 



<$ 







lass 






Book . 






yr 

ADDRESS 



ALFRED MOORE SCALES. 



|.| ! IV ( 1(1 ■• 1IY 



R. D. W. CONNOR. 

(Seen k Historical* 



I TIIK 



WAKE COUNTY MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION. 

tfi,\\ ID. I«M)7.^ 



I IALL Ol HOUSE OF REPRESENTA'I IVES 



KM.F.IGH. 



•■.II 






"\£.t. Iro^A. 



ALFRED MOORE SCALES. 



Four and forty years have gone since the Bpiril "I Stone- 
wall Jackson passed over the river and rested in the shade <»f 
the trees. The flighl of this heroic bouI marked the tenth day 
of May as an anniversary to I"' forever hallowed in the grate- 
ful heart of the South. The career of Stonewall Jackson 
p than the career of any other man personifies the South- 
ern ( lonfederacy. As the ( lonfederacy by one bold stroke rose 
to a place among the powers of the world, so Stonewall Jack- 
son al one bound leaped from obscurity to 8 place among the 
immortals of history. The Confederacy in a brief 3pasm of 
glory dazzled the eyes of mankind by the brilliancy of its 
achievements; and Stonewall Jackson Like a passing meteor 
across the dark clouds of war dazzled the eyes of the world 
by the brilliancy of his genius. And a- the English poel 
declared of the < lonfederacy, 

"No Nation pose bo white and fair, 
( >r fell so pure of crime ;" 

30 Stonewall Jackson, like a stainless knighl of chivalry, rose 
to a foremosl place among heroes, and, facing death with 
inspired heroism, lefl to fame a name untarnished by a single 
blot. In him, too, were besl epitomized those qualitii 
fearless courage, dashing enthusiasm, and steadfasl loyalty 
which made the soldiers of the South the wonder and the 
admiration of the world, and won for them in defeal more 
splendid laurels than crowned the brows of their foes in 
victory. What, then, could be more fitting than for the 
daughters of the South, searching the calendar for a day to 
consecrate to the memory of 1 1 1 * - Confederacy, to selecl the 



I A I l l;i D MOOR] Sc \l.l-. 

anniversary of t 1 n ■ day on which Stonewall Jackson Grave his 
life in defence of their homes and firesides? 

Forty-one years ago the women of this city mel for the 
first time to dedicate the tenth day of May as Memorial Day. 
Moved "by simple loyalty to, the besl and puresl dictates of 
the human heart," they mel in sadness, ye1 in gratitude, to 
render their tributes to the soldiers of the Confederacy, nol 
in stilted phrases and sel forms of speech, bu1 in wreaths and 
garlands of the sweel flowers of spring. With simplicity and 
dignity they inaugurated this beautiful ceremony which the 
years have crystallized into a custom. Forty times since 
thai hour, with the annual return of this May day, your asso- 
ciation has fulfilled the sweel and gracious duty t<> which it 
is dedicated. So many times have you listened while elo- 
quent comrades of the dead rehearsed the story of their 
achievements. We recall the names of Hampton, the gallant 
soldier and wise -talesman of our sister State; of Ransom, a 
soldier a- brave as the bravesl in the field, in the forum an 
orator as eloquenl as the most eloquent; of A.very, whose 
career among us illustrates the virtues of a long line of 
distinguished ancestors; of Ashe, who hears with added 
honor- an honored name; of Waddell, whose name recalls the 
splendid fame of another Waddell who followed the early 
fortune- of Washington : of Scales, who carried into the halls 
of legislation and into the executive's chair the same rare 
courage which had won for him the honors of the battle-field ; 

these you have heard, and others worthy to -mud by them. 
tell this splendid story with splendid eloquence. 

And what a splendid 3torj it i- ! a story of duty to coun- 
try; of < 'age in the field; of endurance in suffering; of 

patience in defeat ; of fidelity in temptation ; and of loyalty at 

all times. No people could hear the annual rehear-al of such 

ry without an elevation of character and an increased 
devotion to country. Thus not only by reason of it- original 
purpose to honor the dead, but also because of it- power of 



Aii bed Moore Si 

good i" the living, the annual observance of Meraoria 

has '-"in"' to be one of tin- most gracious and n il of 

the historic customs "t our people. Public ann 

commanding the attention of tin- | pie from their daily pur- 

-nii- to tin- contemplation "i' 'he greal events and characters 
.if their Past, are the guide posts along the public highways 
of a self-governing people. They keep us in mi ml of the con- 
tinuity of human life and warn as "t" the danger of any efforl 
to live in the Presenl withoul regard to the Past and the Fu- 
ture. "Sometimes we think it i- a pity," as Dr. Mel • r 
"thai a good man who has learned i" be of service to In- fellows 
Bhould be called oul of the world. So sometimes we may 
think aboul an enterprising and useful generation; bu1 after 
all, tin- generations of men are bul relays in civilization's 
march on its journey from savagery t" the millenium. I 
generation owes it to the Pasl ami to the Future that 
no previous worthy attainmenl or achievement, whether oi 
thought ot deed or vision, -hall be lost." For all human life 
whether organized or unorganized, whether "t" communities 
or of individuals, involves all the three elements "t" time. 
The Presenl i- born "t" the Past and is the parenl of the 
Future A- fatal a- death will prove any attempl to separate 
any one <»t' these elements from tin- others. The Revolution- 
tried the experiment in France in 17'.':; and deluged the 

world in I>1 1 '. 'hi' Reconstructionists tried i' in 'he South 

in 1868 ami filled our land with woes innumerable. Hut the 
English people, filled with the wisdom of tin- ages and 
sciouslv building on a thousand years of history, wrought a 
revolution in 1783-1784, ami again in 1832, a- profound as 
the Reign of Terror, ami yel shed no drop of human l>h»><l 
ami broke no human heart. No more valuable lesson than 
this <-an he impressed upon a free people, a' ally upon 

the-,, into whose hand- i- commitu d the guidance "t* the S 
Indeed, no man i- tit to be entrusted with control ->f the 
nt who i- ignorant of th< 1' -■ ; and no people wl 



6 A i i 1:1 i> MoOBE SoALl B. 

indifferenl to their Past need nope to make their Future 

great. 

"Love iii"u thj land, with love far-brough1 
From oul ili«' storied Past, and used 
Within the Present, bul transfused 
Thro' future time by power of thought" 

So nobly wrote a noble poet, and I offer you bis beautiful 
thoughl so beautifully worded as the sentimenl for this day 
and occasion. 

This day could come during no year, and this ceremony 
could be celebrated on no day, withoul bringing to ns number- 
less sweel and helpful messages. I Jin this year il seems to 
me Memorial Hay comes freighted with messages of especial 
significance which il is impossible for us no1 to heed: Follow- 
ing close upon a season of fierce political strife wherein 
passion too often usurped the seal of judgment, hackneyed 
oratory wore the disguise of thoughtful debate, and unre- 
strained indulgence in gross personalities dethroned consid- 
erations of public welfare, this Memorial Day. calm and 
sw< el and peaceful, comes upon ns like gentle sunshine break- 
ing upon a troubled world through angry storm-clouds. ( tam- 
ing in the hill beauty of the springtide, with all its wealth 
of fragrance and of blopm, it hid- us, forgetting the strifes 
;iinl tumults of selfish ambitions, join in brotherly love and 
peace to render an unselfish homage to those who unselfishly, 
though vainly, died thai their country might live. Enrich- 
,i- lives with 3wee1 and noble memories, it brings, it' 
possible, m yel greater wealth in whal it commands us to 
forget. It commands thai in remembering men's virtues, we 
forgel their vices. It commands thai in praising their gri at- 
■ forgel their weakness, h commands thai in honor 
ing their successes we forgel their failures. It commands 
thai in eulogizing their patriotism, we forgel their selfish 
ambitions. In the long calendar of the year it is the one 
day <d' worldly significance during which men by common 
consenl forgel the ugly passions aroused by strifes for polit- 



A.LFBED M ;i SCALE8. 7 

ical spoils; forgel the animosities born of struggles for indus- 
trial supremacy; forgel the enmities engendered by clashing 
ambitions for professional distinctions; forgel the petty jeal- 
ousies bred by rivalries for ~< ►< ■ i ; 1 1 honors; th< • day, in 

a word, in which men forgel themselves in honoring otners, 
who, ;il-" forgetful of self, exemplified before ;ill the world 
the highesl ideals of patriotism. ( >u this day, personal accu- 
sations and denunciations of the living by the living are 
hushed in the sweel music of eulogy to the dead, [nto Buch 
sen ices as these, hallowed by the memories of departed heroes 
and by loving tributes to their virtues, no man dares intrude 
his own narrow personality or selfish aspirations. For to-day 
we breathe a purer and serener air; to-day we refresh our 
Bonis with more unselfish joys; to-day we reach upward to 
nobler visions; to-day we live and move and have our being 
'less in the spiril of the age and more in the spiril of the 
ages."* Poor indeed are a people into whose life comes no 
such day as this; barren of noble ideals the mind in which 
it- annual return does no1 lighl the fires of a patriotic pride; 
and mean the soul in which it does nol arouse emotions of 
gratitude] Happy, doubly happy, the people who can turn 
aside from their annual pilgrimage through life to Buch an 
oasis of peace and resl and inspiration! 

To such an oasis it is my happiness to direct you to-day in 
the contemplation of the life and character of the gallanl 
soldieT and eminenl statesman, Alfred Moore Scales. I 
cannol refrain from quoting here the words of Carlyle : "We 
cannot look however imperfectly upon a greal man. without 
gaining something by him. He is th<- living light-fountain, 
which it i> good and pleasanl to be near. The lighl which 
enlightens, which has i nlightened the darkness of the world : 
and this nol as a kindled lamp only, bul rather as a natural 
luminary shining by the gift of Heaven; a flowing light- 
fountain, as I Bay, of native original insight, of manhood and 
heroic nobleness; —in whose radiance all souls feel that it is 

Oration btf ■ ••ty nt Cambridjff. Mas 



Ai.i bed Moore S< mi s. 

will with them. On any terms whatsoever, you will nol 

grudge i" wander in such aeighborh 1 for a while." But, 

perhaps, we may qoI apply to Governor Scales the term 
"great" in the sense in which < !arlyle used ii : yel ii is certain 
we eannol deny thai bis career among men was "a living 

fountain of manh 1 and heroic nobleness." 

Words thai may better be applied to him are those of I lharles 
Francis Adam-, who -aid : "The older L have grown and the 
more 1 have studied and seen, the greater in my esteem as an 
elemenl of strength in a people, has Character become, and 

3s in the conducl of human affairs have I thoughl of 

capacity or even genius. With Character a race will 
become great, even though a- stupid and unassimilating as 
the Etonians; without Character, any race will in the Long 
run prove ;i failure, though it may number in ii individuals 
having all the brilliancy of the Jews, crowned with the 
genius <•!' Napoleon. * * Yei it is aol easy to put in 

words exactly what i> meanl when we agree in attributing 
character to this man or to that, or withholding it from 
another: conceding it. for instance, to Epaminondas, Cato, 
and Wellington, bul withholding it from Themistocles, ( laesar, 
ami Napoleon. Though we can illustrate what we mean by 
examples which all will accept, we eannol define. ' :: " ' :: ' ' :: ' 
I will contenl myself with quoting this simile from a disciple 
"i Emerson: "The virtues of a superior man arc like the 
wind: th<- virtues of a common man are like the grass; the 
grass, when the wind passes over it. bends.' " h is no1 then 
so much because Governor Scale- was a greal man that I 

• ■ i" speak of him to-day, a- because he was firsl of all 
a Dian "t character, of real "man] I and heroic nobleness," 

ami a- such it i- "g I and pleasanl t" l»c near" him. It i- 

good i" turn for a while from the artificial political excite- 
in. q1 oi the day, when men t >ften seem to surrender their 

judgmenl to passion, I ntemplate the career of one whose 

Cent< Celt bration of birth of Robei ill ■■.-. al 



A I I BED M""i;i S< 

polar-star was judgment, qoI passion; who Btood in the real 
excitemenl of n really great struggle for political freedom 
and racial purity always clear-eyed in vision, calm-minded 
in judgment, firm-footed in conviction. In a day when men 
cannot give expression to their views on questions of public 
policy questions which have divided mankind since th< 
ation of the world withoul denouncing one another as 
corrupl and perfidious, il is pleasant to look upon the charac- 
ter <>l ;i man who was, in public as in private life, 
wholly true to dream untruth" in others. Hi- career was 
Hue of gradual advancement from one posl of trusl and honor 
in the next higher, characteristic "t' ilw- career founded less 
i>n brilliancy <>t' genius than on force "t" character. 

This force of character we find displayed t" a remarkable 
■ ii gr< •■ by the founder of the Scales family in America. Like 
the origin <>(' most American families, the origin of the Scales 
family in the New World is partially hid midst the <-l<>n«l- 
of tradition. The story ;i- preserved by tradition is one of 
those romances of real life which give so much human interesl 
to American history and in which li*'- its chief glory. The 
Ik ro was an English lad of twelve, the offspring of an ancienl 
Anglo-Xorman family, of honorable rank, whose estates had 
been sunk in the shifting sands of English politics. To this 
sturdy English boy the outlook seemed to hold Bmall hope of 
his ever regaining the family estates and family dignities in 
< )ld England, and, thrilled with the wonderful stories be 
heard daily of the wonderful New England in the far West, 
he resolved 

"To sail beyond the Bunset, and the baths 
< >r nil the western stars," 

to -ick whal fortune tin- New World held in trusl for the 
adventurous spirit and the dauntless heart. "There lies tin' 
port; ili«- vessel puffs her -nil:" her prow turn- westward; 
()]i| England -ink- from sight; and ;ill around "gloom the 



Ki Aii i.i d Mooee Scales. 

.lark broad seas/' Crouching in some 'lark and secrel corner 
bid the youthful bu1 stout-hearted stowaway, fearful only of 
discovery while the shore-line could yel be seen, heedless 
fears: bis native land had faded forever from bis sighl when 
be was dragged on d< ck before the angry captain, who threat- 
ened to cui short his adventures by tossing him overboard. 
This dire calamity was averted only by a hard bargain of 
the lad's own proposing. He well knew thai a stoul boy 
could make himself useful on shipboard during a long At- 
lantic voyage, and young Scale- proposed such terms as 
made his passage a g I investment for the captain of the 

sel. It was a long term of hard service, bu1 faithfully 
performed. Landing in Philadelphia, ragged, hungry, penni- 
less, the boy refused the charity of benevolence, determined 
to build his American career upon energy and independence, 
or no1 at all. It was ai terrible undertaking, and he learned 
to "drink life to the lees." Bu1 though the tesl was search 
ing, the metal proved true. Master of himself, the greal 
Xew World lying before him with all its unknown possibili- 
ties, the English lad carved his own pathway to success and 
earned the rare and proud distinction of becoming the founder 
of a family. A brief story this, bul significant in its lessons 
of courage, of patience, of fidelity, of honesty, of steadf 
in-- noble virtues, a fortune in themselves, transmitted by 
the founder to ihe late-' of those who Wear hi- name. 

Threading their way through the forests of \ irginia, de- 
scendants of the tir-i American Scale- found homes on the 
banks of the river Dan in North Carolina. Here we sel 
fool for the lir-i lime on secure historical ground. In the 
early part of the nineteenth century Nathaniel Scales was a 
man of some note in the State. During the twenty years 
from 1803 to L823 he represented Rockingham County in the 
General Assembly for ten term-. While he was serving in 
the House of Commons in 1817 hi- colleague in the Senate 

- General William Bethel, whose term of service in the 



A i i i;i i> M tE Scales. II 

General Assembly was longer even than thai of Scales. The 
blood of these two united in the veins of the future governor. 
Roberl II. Scales, son of Nathaniel Scales, married Jane W. 

Bethel, daughter of William Bethel, and by her I':'--;! 1 1 n - 

father of ten children. 

One of their seven sons was Alfred Moore Scales, born 
November 26, l s i'7. al [ngleside, the old family homi 
in Rockingham County. He was fortunate in being born into 
a family in which education was regarded as one of the essen 
tials of lit* — a view however universally accepted uow, thai 
found few advocates then. The "old-field schools" of thai 
day, so much praised by those who know nothing aboul them, 
were poor institutions of learning, and the "lighl of knowl- 
edge" was kept burning in North Carolina by a few private 
high schools, then called "classical schools," of real merit. 

Perhaps the mosl famous of these scl Is was the Caldwell 

[nstitute, through the doors of which many of North Caro- 
lina's eminenl men passed into the State University. From 
Caldwell [nstitute Alfred ML Scales entered the University 
in the fall of I s r». where he remained only one year, leaving 
without graduation. Following the example of many other 
men distinguished in the public life of the State, he soughl 
his firsl employment in the schoolroom, where his princely 
salary teen dollars a month doubtless recalled to his 

mind the village preacher who was 



* * * 



passing rich with forty pounds a yen-." 



J Jut young Seal.-, though entirely successful with bis - 
work, had no intention of d< voting his life to teaching. He 
used the schoolroom merely as a stepping-stone to the law. 
Who thai is familiar with the history of North Carolina does 
not recall the long lisl of strong and vigorous men who have 
lured from the schoolroom by the greater inducements 

of the Counter, the Bar, and the Pulpit? Had the scl 1- 

room been able to hold it- own asrainsl these rivals, who 



L2 All &ED MOOEE S< \i.i iS. 

estimate the tremendous power such men would have gen- 
erated in the youth of this State? Bui now ao man can tell, 
and Done will dare hazard a guess, of the loss of power, and 
efficiency, and wealth which North Carolina has sustained 
by adhering to a policy which make- it almost impossible for 

nun to find in her schoolrooms competent Livelih 1- and 

opportunities for the gratification of wholesome ambitions. 
Such a policy, pursued even to this day with doubtful wis- 
dom, if ii has ao other virtues, must a1 leasl be allowed those 
which belong to age: mere than half a century ago it enriched 
the political annals of the State at the expense of her educa- 
tional development, by forcing Alfred M. Scale- from the 
schoolroom to the Bar. Entrance to the Bar was then to an 
even greater extent than new the necessary firsl step in the 
progress of these who soughl the honors of a political career. 
Scales had the good fortune to read his law course under the 
instruction of Judge William II. Battle, one of the ablest of 
the justices of our Supreme < !ourt. Ee was admitted to prac- 
tice in the county court in 1852, and in the superior court in 
L856. Hi- industry, his unfailing application to the demands 
of his profession, and his sterling integrity, won for him a 
place of leadership and honor at a Bar which counted among 
it- members such lawyers as Dillard and Gilmer, Dick and 
Kiiiiin. the Settle- and the Moreheads. In politics Scale- was 
a I democrat. It is no1 accessary to follow in detail the course 
by which he attained a place of distinction in the political 
life of the State. The steps by which he climbed were the 
usual ones which may be found enumerated in the biographies 

nv of • public men. ( lounty solicitor in 1 852 ; member 

of the Genera] Assembly in L852 L853, and again in L856- 
I 857 ; clerk and master of the courl of equity in Rockingham 

aty in L858; three times his party's candidate for the 
I deral Congress, once successfully; presidential elector for 
the State a1 large in 1^;<>; :: ' candidate I'm- the convention 



■ I me I icket. 



Ai.i i;i D M'OOEE Sc LL] 3. L3 

which was defeated in i x, '>i ; bo runs the Btory of the first 
decade of his polil tea] career. 

He came upon the political stage ai an exciting epoch in 
the history of the country. The In-each between North and 

South, started in the convent] f L787, had been gradually 

widened and deepened until the two sections could be held 
together no longer save by the bayonet. In common with all 
real patriots, North and South, Scales beheld with deep cod 
cern and profound sorrow the onrush of the greal crisis. 
Hoping - with all the fervor of his intense soul thai the two 
sections would find some way ou1 of their difficulties and the 
Union would be saved, he never doubted wli.it position both 
duty and honor required of North Carolina if the conflict 
should come. The secession of ' South Carolina in December, 
ls<»o, and the certainty that other States would soon follow 
hor hasty example, brought the question of North Carolina's 
position in the struggle directly before the people. CJnwise 
men indulged in much wild talk, coupled with criminations 
and recriminations, charges and counter-charges, mosl of 
them, like campaign charges of our own day, as false as all 

of them were useless. Bui the greal mass of the ] pie 

wished to mow slowly and cautiously and deprecated the 
needle-- agitation which made a sane and unimpassioned dis- 
cussion of the greal issues almosl impossible. In January, 
18G1, the General Assembly brought the discussion to a point 
by passing an act which required the governor to cause an 
election to be held February 28 to determine whether a con- 
tention should assemble, and at the same time to elect dele- 
gates to it. The act declared thai the purpose of the conven- 
tion should be "to effed an honorable adjustmenl of existing 
difficulties whereby the Federal Union is endangered, or 
otherwise determine whal action will besl preserve the honor 
and promote the interests of North Carolina." The issue 
presented to the people of the State was not the right of 
sion, but the expediency of it. < Mi thi< momentous question 



11 Alfred Moore Scali b. 

men losl their former political bearings never again to find 
them; Whigs arrayed themselves by the side of Democrats 
and Democrats followed the leadership of Whigs; and polit- 
ical parties were torn asunder never again to be reunited. 

In .mtv county, convention meetings and anti-convention 
meetings were ln-ld and candidates without regard to former 
political affiliations were nominated and senl oul on a shorl 
bul mosl intense campaign. Such a meeting called by the 
advocates of the convention me1 in the court-house of Rock- 
ingham County a1 Wentworth, February L3.* Scales was 
present, and also his future competitor for the convention, 
Thomas Settle, then solicitor of his district. Securing the 
floor, Settle spoke earnestly againsl the convention and for 
the Union, declaring thai he would no1 sit or acl with Dis- 
unionists. When asked if he thoughl it fair for him to 
speak in the meeting if he did no1 intend to abide by the 
result, he acknowledged the (ova- and justice of the question, 
and immediately withdrew, followed by a Large number of 
Union men. After this withdrawal the following resolutions 
were adopted : 

"Whereas, the presenl disturbed condition of our country is alarm- 
ing in its character, and requires, in our opinion, atfull and honesl 
expression of public sentimenl <>n the pari of the people: therefore, 

"Resolved, Thai we approve of bolding a State Convention, believ 
[ ng thai the masses, whose interesl is al stake should be allowed an 
expression <>r their views on the crisis which aow distracts and dis- 
turbs the peace and harmony of our common country. 

"Itesolred, Thai while we are devotedly attached to the Cnion, 
when it i-xists according to the Constitution, we believe thai unless 
Borne compromise be made between this and the meeting of the con 
mention, or during the session thereof, by which all the constitutional 
rights of the South are secured, then it will he the duty, and to the 
resl of North Carolina, i<> dissolve her connection with the Union. 
/,,,/. Thai our delegates to the sine Convention are Instructed 

to Hf1 BO llfl In I'elleel tile above views." 

011 the unanimous adoption of these resolutions Gov- 
ernor David S. Re id and Alfred M. Scales were nominated 



M i 6, 1861. 



Ai.i'i;ki> Moore Scales. 1 5 

as candidates for the convention. Governor Reid was absenl 
in Washington serving on the Peace Commission, bnl Scales 
was presenl and accepted the aomination, declaring i1 to be 
the duty of every man in such a crisis to obey the call 6j 
his countrymen. 

In the meantime the Union men who had followed Settle 
had organized in the streel and adopted the following peso- 
Ini ion :'" 

''Resolved, That in the opinion of tliis meeting, the State CJonren 
Hon, If assembled, should use every effort to reconcile the present 
unhappy differences between the two sections of the Confederacy, 
and if possible to re-establish the Union of these states, and to this 
end the said convention should exhaust every honorable means before 
entertaining propositions for the withdrawal of North Carolina from 
the Union." 

Dr. E. T. Broadnax and Thomas Settle were then nom- 
inated as candidates for the convention. In accepting the 
nomination Settle declared that he would shrink from no 
responsibility, though the canvass would cost him a greal 
loss. "The Dis-unionists" he had learned had nominated 
two gentlemen of high character, and although the canvass 
would doubtless call forth much feeling, he had no idea thai 
it would be of a personal nature. Governor Reid was bound 
to him by every tie that hinds one man to another. f while 
Mr. Scales had been through Life his friend and companion. 

The burden of the canvass fell upon Scales and Settle, and 
perhaps in no county in the State were the two prevailing 
views of the political situation better represented. S 
urged forbearance. Vigorously and earnestly opposing seces- 
sion, he declared thai he had even less sympathy with the 
views of the now Republican party which had arisen in the 
North. If his voice could be heard in the North he would 
appeal to the people of that section to ren unco their fanati- 
cism and uphold the Constitution ami Union of the fathers. 

•The Standard, March 6, 1861. 

^Settle had been Governor Reid's private secretary. Reid married Settle's Bi 



L6 Al.i i;i D Mm >KB S< ai.i .>. 

JJut he could do1 be heard in the North, and he was forced 
to address his plea to his own people, begging them to dis- 
card passion, to tear prejudice from their hearts, even to 
forget their wrongs, and to come forward and save the Union. 
The "conservatives," he declared, in both sections of the 
Union musl rise in their mighl and save the country from 
the hands of those who were trj ing to destroy it. Ee did nol 
belong to the "No Hope" party; his heart was full of hope, 
and he would work with the inspiration of hope to save the 
Onion and, if possible, prevenl North Carolina from being 
"dragooned" into secession. Bui he wished it to be distinctly 
understood thai his own fortune and fate were inseparably 
involved in the fortune and fate of his native State, and if 
North Carolina solemnly declared for secession he would ask 
no more questions, but, obeying her sovereign voice, would 
2:0 to her defence with fully as much zeal as any of those who 
were foreraosl in plunging her into difficulties.* 

At the bottom there was really very little difference be- 
tween this view and the view taken by Scale-. Settle was 
opposed to calling any convention ai all; Scale- favored the 

convention, bu I for the purpose of withdrawing the State 

from the Union. He did no1 favor immediate secession, or 
3 eci ssion ai all if it could be avoided with peace and honor. 
Bui in his judgment, and his judgmenl was rarely ai fault, 
the crisis demanded a convention in which the people oi the 
Siaic could be heard, firsl of all. for the Constitution and 
the Union, and if the preservation of the Union according to 
the Constitution proved an impossibility, then for secession; 
for if war came, as he thoughl war would come. North < !aro 
I i dm could not with honor even hesitate as to her course. *'ll 
I tnusl ahed my blood in battle," he declared solemnly, "1 
will shed it for the South and my people and nol againsl 

them. "I 



• trch 6, 1861. 

\ is 80, 188 I. 






A i i bed Moore So sjles. I 7 

So far as the personal bearing of the two men was - 

oerned, it was a model canvass, Bach discussed his vriews with 
candor and force, like men familiar with their mbject, with- 
out indulging in personalities; there was no questioning 
of each other's motives or integrity, no criminations and re 
criminations which small men. ignoranl of their subject, 
mistake for debate. They knew how to separate the per- 
sonality of an opponenl from the views he advocated. Were 
all political canvasses conducted in the same spiril and with 
the same intelligence they would become educational cam- 
paigns in reality ami the stigma attached to the term "poli- 
tician" would be exchanged for the resped everywhere ac- 
corded to the term "teacher f " It was uphill work for Scale-. 
At th«' beginning of the canvass the sympathies of at Least 
two-thirds of the people were with his opponent, and this 
opponent was as able a debater, and as fertile in resources, 
as any who ever took the stump in North Carolina. The 
debate was a battle royal, and royally waged. Scales was 
defeated by a small vote, bnl as the convention was also 
defeated in the State his successful opponent never took the 
seat to which he was elected. 

lint the march of events soon justified the view taken by 
Scales. Lincoln was inaugurated, and declared that the 
Union must be preserved. The Confederate Congress met 
at Montgomery and adopted a permanent Constitution for 
the Confederate States. Fort Sumter was bombarded and 
the American Hag hauled down. Lincoln called for troop-. 
proclaimed a blockade of the Confederate ports, ami de- 
nounced the 

•• * * sword and lire. 

Red ruin, and the breaking up of laws." 

against the seceded States. These event- -truck from under 
the Union men their last support, and they rushed forward 
with enthusiasm to the defence of the Smith. A striking 
illustration of the change wroughl in the situation by the fall 



is Aii bed Moore S< mi s. 

of Fori Sumter is found in the following narrative from the 
pen of the late Judge George Howard.* Says he: "On Mon- 
day, April 13, L861, I held courl in Danbury, Thomas Set- 
tle, solicitor. Messrs. J. M. Leach and Settle asked for the 
use of tli«' court-room for political speaking; both were 
Whigs, seeking the Congressional nomination by appeals to 
the Union sentinu nl of the district. 1 granted their request. 
After reaching the hotel, A. M. Scales and Roberl McLean 
came over and remarked thai it' they believed the rumor 
which they had heard, that Fori Sumter had been tired mi, 
they would reply to Leach and Settle, and asked me whal L 
thoughl of it. 1 told them whether true or not, 1 was sure 
something of like character would soon occur. They returned 
i,, the court-house, and soon I was informed that they and 
Hon. .1. A. Gilmer had concluded to speak. All -poke — 
Leach, Settle, and Gilmer as Union Whigs; Scale- and Mc- 
Lean a- State"- Rights Democrats. Courl adjourned in a 
few days, and I left Danbury in a buggy with Settle for his 
home- the road passing near. Km not through Madison. 
A- we approached Madison, chatting pleasantly, suddenly 
Settle sprang np and peering into the distance, exclaimed: 
•What'- that V I looked and could ju-t distinguish a flag 
floating from a building \\\ Madison. Settle in a highly 
excited tone: it i- a secession flag something has hap- 
pened Madison has been a strong Union town.' Jus1 then 
we -aw several persons riding toward us. Settle hailed a 
gentleman on horseback, reading a newspaper, asking, *\\ hat s 
the matter?' Promptly came the answer: 'Haven't you 
heard the news? Sumter attacked Lincoln ha- called for 
75,000 troop- everybody i- for war Governor Eleid is 
speaking al Madison volunteers are enlisting. 1 Settle, turn- 
ing to me: i mii.-t goto Madison and gel right.' 1 objected, 
telling him he needn'1 hurry there would be both time and 

'Written on the fly-leaf "f '"/'/-. South Since t>,, War." Before his death 

H. G (' lor, i. ..in whom the 

ed it. 



Alfred Moore Scales. 1 9 

occasion. He insisted. At Last we agreed to go, he to speak 
five minutes and then go on. As we drove up, we could hear 
Governor Reid in the upper room of a building, while aboul 
i lie door nt the ground entrance there was quite a crowd. A- 
soon as we came Dear, Settle sprang up and waving his hands 
aloft, cried out: '1 was all wrong! I was all wrong! You 
are all right ! You are all right !' and leaping from the buggy 

he mounted one of the buttresses to the doorway, and until 

I called 'time up' poured forth a most passionate appeal for 
every man to stand by the South. We then went to his home. 
While en route he said he would resign his office and go into 
the war. I pressed him not to do so until the end of the 
circuit; but he would listen to no delay, insisting thai he musl 
resign, and soliciting the appointment of Hon. .John Kerr. 

"The next Monday at Rockingham (court) soon after court 
met, the sound of fife and drum was heard from several direc- 
tions, and there marched into Wentworth aboul L50 volun- 
teers. At recess I noticed both Scales and Settle in the ranks. 
An amusing' incident occurred. A Mexican War veteran, one 
Hancock, was commanding. As he faced the long line, he 
called out, 'Right face!' Everybody faced right, save Scales 
and Settle, and both of them faced about. Thereupon two 
companies were formed and Scales and Settle were elected 
captain-. 

"In a week or two I returned to Greensboro. As I was 
passing the residence of Hon. J. A. Gilmer he called to me, 
and, coming out to the buggy, said with deep emotion: "On 
my return home, T found that at the very hour when I was 
speaking in Danbury, my son was donning his uniform and 
hastening away t<> Fori Macon. We are all one now.' ' 

War had come, then, and the people of North < larolina did 
not stay the formal ordinance of secession, but springing to 
arms hurried to the side of Virginia and South Carolina. 
The General Assembly was forced to call the convention that 
Scales had urged the people to call. Differences of opinion 



20 Ai.i i.-i d Moore S< ules. 

vanished and all patriots rallied to the defence of the State. 
Reid ami Broadnax, l>ut lately rival candidates, forgol their 
differences and entered the convention together; while Scales 
and Settle, fresh from their joinl canvass, unsheathed their 
sword- and stepped to the heads of their companies. They 
were all one now. 

The companies of Scales and Settle were offered to the 
governor, accepted, and ordered to a camp of instruction at 
Garysburg. They were enrolled in the Third, afterwards the 
Thirteenth Regimenl of North Carolina Volunteers, under 
the command of Colonel William I >. Pender. In September, 
L861, Colonel Pender was transferred to the command of the 
Sixth North Carolina, and "after several days' balloting" 
Captain Scales was elected to succeed him in command of 
the Thirteenth.* 

Though trained to the duties of civil life, Captain Scales 
possessed many of the qualities of the soldier. Obedienl bu1 
uol servile, he was an efficienl subordinate, winning the con 
fidence of his official superiors. Po-itive but not domineer- 
ing, lie was a capable leader commanding the respeel of his 
followers. Strict bul not harsh, he preserved the discipline 
;irv for efficiency without forfeiting the t'riend-hip of 
his men. Enthusiastic bu1 not reckless, he stimulated and 
inspired his soldiers without losing their confidence in his 
judgment. Brave bu1 oo1 foolhardy, he knew when enough 
had been dared for honor and when common sense required 
respite from effort. IIi< democratic training and tastes made 
hi in popular as a captain of citizen-soldiers. His fine bearing 
and dashing courage made him an ideal regimental com- 
mander. Ili- calmness and coolness of judgmenl made him 
a skilful brigade lender. Ili- own ideal of the true soldier 
he pave years after the war in these word-, speaking in the 
National Congress: "With the true 3oldier covetousnes is 
contemned, avarice is despised, and illiberality is regarded 



A i i bed Moore Scales. 21 

as meanness. Careful of their own honor, they infringe qo1 
the rights or honor of others. Quick to resenl an insult, when 
avenged they are equally quick to forget and forgive. Prompl 
to guard and defend the life and honor of the Nation, when 
done they arc the best conservators of peace." 4 This ideal 
description of the ideal soldier, drawn Long after the speaker's 
sword had been forever sheathed and with reference to those 
againsl whom he had drawn it, was in reality an unconscious 
reflection of his own bearing both in the battles of war and in 
the battles of peace. 

I have said thai Captain Scales's democratic training and 
tastes made him popular as a captain of a company. It mi 
be remembered that the soldiers whom he led were drawn 
from the ranks of a democratic people, citizens in arm- for 
the defence of their country, and not paid soldiers of a regu- 
lar army. They were the companions of his boyhood, his 
friends and neighbors, and he enjoyed his superiority of rank 
only by their suffrages. The war once ended, captain and 
men would return to their ordinary pursuits, all artificial 
differences created by temporary rank would sink and vanish 
away, and they would mingle together in daily intercourse, 
equals. It was of the first importance, therefore, that cap- 
tain and men should be on terms of mutual friendship and 
respect. Scales himself had enlisted a- a private in the ranks ; 
his companions made him their captain. His fellow officers 
approved hi- bearing among them ami, before he had ever 
-nil a battle, made him their colonel. 

I have said that Colonel Scales's fine bearing and dashing 
courage made him an ideal regimental commander. Witness 
his conduct at Williamsburg, Gaines's Mill, or Cold Earbor, 
Malvern Hill. Fredericksburg, and Chancellorsville. At Wil- 
liamsburg hi- regimenl was under tire the tir-i time, and it 
would have been no matter for surprise had the men hesitated 
and wavered. Bill not so: the Thirteenth rushed into a hand- 

*From speech on Indian Affairs in Congress March 23, 1876. Congressional Record. 
Vol. IV, 1919. 



22 A 11 i;i D M' >ORE Si \i.i s. 

to-hand conflict with the steadiness and coolness of veterans, 
and, though "suddenly and fiercely attacked/' as a critical 

historian says, "under the stimulating example of Col -I 

Scales and Lieutenant-Colonel Ruffin, held its own until the 
■ of the contest."" 1 General Longstreel fell constrained 
i" mentionin his reporl of the battle both Scales and Ruffin 
among those who "discharged their difficull duties with 
marked skill and fearlessness. "f At Cold Harbor, too, his 
gallantry elicited the applause of the commanding general. 
1 onel Scales, Thirteenth North Carolina, was conspicuous 
for his fine bearing," wrote General Garland. What man 
with red blood in his veins can read without tingling nerves 
of the condud which won this high praise! The regiment, 
advancing in the face of a rain <<\' lead, was suddenly ordered 
to change front. The movemenl was critical ; enemies pressed 
on fronl and tlank; success depended on the coolness of the 
colonel. "Seizing the colors," Colonel Scales "rushed in fronl 

of the Thirteenth, as < 1 as it' he had been on drill," and 

called upon his men to stand to them, "thus," as Genera] Gar- 
land saySj "restoring confidence and keeping his nun in posi- 
tion.":] "His voice rang clear," says an eye-witness. "He 
gave the command, 'Battalion, lefl half wheel!' The old 
Thirteenth swung around like a d<><>r mi its hinges," and. 
incited by the voice and bearing of their leader, the men 
charged fiercely on the advancing enemy and routed them.§ 
At Malvern Hill, in face of the severesl artillery fire thai he 
ever sawexcepl at ( rettysburg, ( !olonel Si -air- led his men again 
and again againsl the enemy's line, and by his tremendous ex- 
ertions so overtaxed his strength thai after the excitemi q1 of 
tin battle was over, he collapsed from sheer exhaustion, and 
f( r several weeks lay ill. nigh unto death. Ai Fredericksburg 

he held his men in position in the face of "i si destructive 

shell, solid shol and musketry," "from early morn until 

Vol. IV. 51. 
bellion. Seriei I. Vol. X I 
Hi i.l. . 639-45. ii Forth Carolina 



A i.i> 'bed Moore Scai i ■ . 23 

laic in t lit* evening." Chancellorsville broughl his career ae 
a regimental commander to a close. Be followed Jackson on 
thai famous think movemenl which cosl the greal 3oldier's 
life. In this movemenl he led his regimenl to "the most 
advanced position" of the Confederate troops, "a long dis- 
tance" after the others had fallen back. Near the close of 
the charge while urging his men forward he was 3truck down 
by a shell, "and thus," says Pender, "I was deprived of as 
gallanl a man as is to be found in the service." • Thirty per 
cent, of the totaj loss of Pender's brigade fell to the -hare of 
the Thirteenth — unimpeachable testimony of the gallantry of 
men and leader. After the battle, when the officers of the 
brigade gathered in the general's tent to hear his criticisms 
of their conduct during the battle, Pender said to the officers 
of the Thirteenth: "1 have nothing to say to you, bu1 to 
hold yen all up as models in duty, courage, and daring."! 

I have said that General Scales's calmness and coolness of 
judgment made him a skilful brigadier general. Promotion 
to the command of a brigade was the merited reward of his 
gallantry and a just tribute to his skill. "His military title- 
were all won where the sword alone could win them: they 
were worn where it was danger's self to wear them. ":J: Scali - 
fought his way upward under the sharp eye of one of the 
severest of military critics. ( Vrtainly the Confederate Army 
contained no severer critic, and perhaps no abler one. than 
General Pender. Penetrating in his criticisms, he was -par- 
ing in his praise; the officer who received the praise of Pen- 
der, desi rved it. Scales won it and Pender gave it. Scales 
began his military career as a captain in Pender'- regiment. 
He succeeded Pender in command of the Thirteenth. Ee 
fought a1 Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville in Pen.: 
brigade and under Pender's eye. At Pender's requesl he 
assisted in command of the brigade at Fredericksburg. Pen- 

•Official Records. Series I, Vol. XXV. 935-7. 
tConfederate Military History, Vol. IV. 349-50. 
tJudge R. M. Douglas. 



2 ! Ai.i bed Moore S. lles. 

der fairly eulogized his conduct a1 Chancellorsville. Twice 
Pender pecommended him to Presidenl Davis as worthy to 
command a brigade. When his own promotion came after 
the death of Jackson, Pender urged upon the president the 
appointment of Scales as his successor. Such an endorsement 
from Pender, trained and critical soldier, was no trifling 
tribute. A. P. Hill joined in Pender's recommendation and 
Robert E. Lee endorsed it. The officers of the Thirteenth re- 
quested the promotion and the North ( Jarolina delegation in both 
Souses of Congress joined in the request* Williamsburg, 
Cold Harbor, Malvern Hill, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville 
— all spoke aloud for this merited recognition of valor and 
skill, and Colonel Scales had not yet recovered from his 
Chancellorsville wound when he received his commission as 
brigadier general. Gettysburg followed within less than a 
month to test his ability to command a brigade. Forming the 
left of Pender's division on the afternoon of duly 1, General 
Scales led his brigade down the Chambersburg Turnpike, re- 
el a Confederate regiment overpowered by numbers, over- 
took tlic front line of the Confederate Army, passed it, 
charged up Seminary Ridge, routed the enemy opposing him, 
dashed down the opposite side of the ridge, drove the enemy 
from their fortified position, and pursued them into the town 
of ( r( "; sburg. The official report of the battle tells us that 
Scales's brigade "encountered a mosl terrific tire of -rape and 
shell and musketry," hut ••-till pressed forward at 

double-quick" until the bottom of the ridge was reached.f 
Genera] Scales declared thai c\rvy discharge from the ene- 
my"- batteries made -ad havoc in his line. "Our Line had 
been broken up." he says, '•and now only ;i squad here and 
there marked the place where regiments had been. Every 
field officer in the brigade save one was wounded,"^ — a 
glorious record of valor and gallantry. General Scales him* 

Serie I. Vol. 1. 1. Pari II. pp. 831, 846. 
Serie 1. Vol. \XVI1. • 
tlbid.. 669. 



Ai.i'UKi) Moore Scali 3. 25 

self was everywhere along the whole line, cheering, inciting 
and directing his men, until, as at Chancellorsville, al the 
very moment of triumph, a shell struck him down, inflicting 
a painful and dangerous wound.* Throughoul the cam- 
paigns of Lee and Grant — in the Wilderness, al Spottsyl- 
vania, at Cold Harbor, around Petersburg — General Scales 
led his brigade with the same dash and skill thai marked bis 
leadership at Gettysburg, winning a constantly increasing 
reputation with constantly decreasing numbers. Sickness 
prevented his being with his men at the sad close at Appo- 
mattox, and when the news reached him at home he sheathed 
his sword and laid aside his uniform with that calmness and 
dignity which are founded in a consciousness of duty well 
and faithfully performed. 

With General Scales the war closed April 9, 1865. Four 
years before he had declared to his people that if he had to 
shed his blood in fighting he would shed it for the South and 
his people, and not against them. He had now made good 
that declaration to the very letter. ~No apology for his com se 
arose to his lips to belie his conscience ; no vain regrets lin- 
gered in his heart to embitter his spirit. He sheathed his 
sword and returned to his civic duties feeling "malice toward 
none," but "charity for all"; ready to lend his hand to the 
task of binding up the Nation's wounds ; and determined to 
contribute by voice and conduct toward achieving and cherish- 
ing a just and lasting peace between the torn and bleeding 
sections. 

The Nation owes to no class of its citizens a debt greater 
than it owes to that class of southern soldiers of whom Gen- 
eral Scales was a true representative. They fought the war 
in good faith, they laid down their arms in good faith, and 
they accepted the result in good faith. Their wisdom and 
prudence, their saneness and patience, during the terrible 
decade following the war, entitle them To a warm place in 

"Official Records. Series I, Vol. XXVII, 669. See also "Battles and Leaders of the 
Civil War," Vol. Ill, pp. 355, 424. 



26 Ai.i'i;i:i» Moore Scales. 

the Nation's hearl forever. We all kno-w the conditions in the 
South after the war. We know also the attitude those con- 
ditions forced the southern people to assume inward northern 
men who came to make their homes among as. We know, 
too, bow almosl impossible it was to differentiate between the 
good and the bad, the genuine and the dross, and we know 
how seldom any such distinction was drawn. This knowledge 
makes doubly emphatic the following words spoken of Gen- 
eral Scales by one of those who came from the North at the 
close of the war and east his lo1 in with us — one who proved 
himself to be a courteous gentleman, a pleasant companion, 
a scholarly jurist, and a capable public servant. Say- he, 
General Scales "was singularly free from bitterness. Of 
strong political convictions, and open and bold in their ex- 
pression, he yet could separate political sentiment from the 
individual, and respect the one while he antagonized the 
other. :: ' * * Radically differing upon the essentials of 
government, we were of necessity widely apart upon nearly 
all political matters: but we have long been friends. He 
had kindly words for me when kindly words were needed." 4 
What breadth of mind, what catholicity of spirit, these words 
portray! And what a noble eulogy: "He had kindly words 
for me when kindly words were needed." The spirit ex- 
pressed by this epigram, displayed by a few rare leaders, 
North and South, is the cement which holds together our once 
divided bu1 now reunited country. May such a spirit so per- 
vade the hearts and mind- of all our countrymen, in all sec- 
tion- of our country, that every unpleasanl memory left in 
the wake of sectional strife -hall soon be forever eradicated, 
and everywhere throughout our greal country honor -hall he 
iorded to those, whatever banner they may have followed, 
who unselfishly answered the call of duty as Cod gave 'hem 
to -co and understand it. 



•Judtce Robert M. Douglas: Address at memorial meeting of Greensboro Bar. 



Alfred Moose Scales. 27 

Such was the spirit which General Scales carried with him 
into the National Congress, to which he was elected in L87 1. 
The same qualities of character which won for him honors 
on the battle-field won honors for him mi the floor of Con- 
gress. He was democratic in his bearing, and "amid the 
splendor of Washington society lived the simple and decent 
life befitting a Tribune of the People." He was brave, and 
always openly and frankly expressed his convict imis mi public 
questions. He was "truthful even in politics." "lie was 
honest," and his "political income was absolutely limited to 
his lawful salary." The extravagance which had sprung up 
in government circles after the war received his severest con- 
demnation: a government, he declared, which collects from 
the people more money than it needs for an economical ad- 
ministration of public business is guilty of robbery. He 
w r aged relentless warfare against the corruption in high 
government circles which disgraced the country with the 
scandals of the Credit Mobilier, the Whiskey Ring, the 
frauds of Belknap, and of the Indian Bureau. As chairman 
of the Committee on Indian Affairs he did noble service in 
exposing the frauds of the Indian Bureau and led the cam- 
paign for the protection of the Indians from the robberies of 
thieving agents — a campaign which resulted in the cleansing 
of that Augean stable. The Internal Revenue Svstem bore 
hard upon his people struggling under adverse industrial 
conditions, and he labored strenuously but vainly to have it 
abolished. In the signs of the times he read the dangers 
which even then threatened the industrial life of the country 
by the merging of great transportation companies, and he 
advocated an Interstate Commerce Commission to control 
their operations. He made no set speeches "for P>nnconibr," 
but engaged frequently and effectively in the debates of Con- 
gress, always speaking plainly and to the point without using 
any of the tinsel ornamentations of the orator.- Though 

'Congressional Records from 1875-1884. 



28 Ai.i i;ki> Moore Scales. 

thoroughly southern in bis political sympathies and convic- 
tions, be served his country in the National < 'ongress noi as a 
southerner, bu1 as an Ann rican. Through all his speeches 
in Congress runs the spirit of nationalism. When an nnre- 
constructed Yankee from Vermonl opposed the granting of 
pensions to veterans of the Mexican War because some of 
them had been southern soldiers. General Scale- rebuked the 
sectionalism of bis utterances; declaring his belief that this 
spirit was no1 representative of the real spirit of the North, 
and expressed his joy that the heart from which such senti- 
ment- could emanate was not the heart of a native-burn Ameri- 
can. The people of the South, lie declared, came back into 
the Union in good faith, and should the United States ever 
again become entangled in war he pledged that his people 
"'would not be found behind that gentleman and his constit- 
uents" in rallying to the deb nee of the llag.' :: ' The great war 
through which the Nation had just passed had taught both 
section- "to know and appreciate our own people, their valor 
as well as their devotion to principle. The soldiers 

who fell on both sides were martyrs to principle; and if it 
be true thai the blood of martyrs is the seed of the church, 
then surely the blood of those brave men, so freely shed all 
over our land, will water afresh the tree of liberty planted 
by our fathers. It shall grow and strengthen and spread until 
its shadow shall be east over all Nations, furnishing shelter 
not only to the unborn millions of our own children 
but to i he oppressed and downtrodden throughout the world, "f 

Prophetic word- ! the "tr f liberty planted by our fathers" 

and watered by the blood of the thousands who fell for prin- 
ciple during the great ('Ail War, ha- grown strong in its 
trunk and spread wide its branches because the American 
people throughout our broad Union have cultivated it not in 
the chilling and blighting temperature of the sectionalism 
of the •eeonstructed Yankee politician, but in the warm 

I ii ioi ai Record, Vol. VII. 1326. 

: 11,1,1.. V,,l. IX. 792. 



Ai.ii;i:i» Moork Scai.ks. 29 

and nourishing soil of the nationalism of the reconstructed 
( lonfederate soldier. 

From the halls of Congress, after a decade of service, the 
people of NTorth Carolina called General Scale- to the gov- 
ernor's chair. They expressed their approval of hi- splendid 
record in Congress by giving t<> him the largest majority over 
given until the year 1900. to a candidate for the high office 
of governor.* That he appreciated the honor and understood 
the obligations this flattering triumph imposed upon hint the 
opening sentence of his inaugural address attests: "I am 
deeply and justly sensible of this honor, remembering always, 
as I trust I shall, that duty and honor go hand in hand, 
and that as honor fades in neglect of duty, so duty well per- 
formed alone perpetuates honor."f His term of office began 
at an interesting period in the history of the State. Wearied 
and worn with four years of war and fifteen years of political 
strife, the people of North Carolina needed more than all 
things rest and quiet and peace. Fields were to be cultivated, 
manufactures to be established, commerce to be encouraged, 
schools to be developed, all great works requiring cessation 
from strife and agitation. In his inaugural address, in his 
messages to the General Assembly, and in his public speeches, 
the new goyernor took high and advanced grounds on all 
these problems. Some of his utterances are worth quoting 
and remembering. Xo school teacher could express more 
forcibly or more earnestly than he did the duty of State 
and parent toward the education of children. "'Intelli- 
gence is the life of liberty,' " he declared, "and republi- 
can institutions cannot be maintained without it." We 
should "infuse into our people a spirit of education and so 
manufacture public sentiment in it- behalf a- to make it a 
reproach to every parent who refuses to send hi- children to 
school, and to every child ten years of age and over who can- 

*Official Records in office of secretary of state. 
tLegislative Documents, 1885. 



30 Alfred Moore Scales. 

not read. ' x ' ' :: ' The obligation of every parenl to Look 

after the mental training and developmenl of his children 
i- qo1 the less in sight of God and man than the obligation to 
feed and clothe their bodies. Be who does no1 provide for 
his own, and especially for those of his own household, has, 
we are told, denied the faith and is worse than an infidel, and 
surely it cannot be understood thai in making the provision 
the immortal pan of the child is to be neglected."* During 
the t'otu- years of Governor Scales's administration one-third 
more miles of railroads were buill than during the fifteen 
preceding years -a sure indication of public confidence in 
the government. Congratulating the people of Xorth Caro- 
lina upon the development of railroad construction, he said: 
"We have realized the dreams of our fathers, and have tun- 
neled the mountains, filled up the gorges, and connected by 
one of the grandest works in the world the extreme western 
part of the State with the Atlantic Ocean. The mountains 
and the sea have kissed each other. The people have been 
brought into closer contact and sectional divisions will disap- 
pear. The resources of the West, so rich in mineral- and 
timbers, .-in- bring developed; the markets of tin- Eas1 opened 
up. and we are fast becoming one homogeneous, united, 
happy, and prosperous people."* The whole course of Gov- 
ernor Scale-'- administration tended to this happy consumma- 
tion. Hi- distinguished successor declared that the adminis- 
tration of Governor Scales was "so wise and conservative in 
it- character thai hardly a ripple disturbed the surface of 
public opinion during his entire term/' for "the wisdom and 
justice of her governor established peace and quid through- 
out the length and breadth of the State. "f A splendid trib- 
ute and veil deserved, recalling the well-known proverb, 
"Happy the people whose an mil- are brief." During < rovernor 
Scali ' term of office no greal dramatic events interrupted 
the even course of life to arresl the attention of the historian: 



i 1 1 . 1885. 

ii a! Vddre . Lesri latlye Documents of 1889. 



Au-'i;i:i> Mooee Sc \i.i-. :;i 

his administration was no1 the tortuous dashing mountain 
brook, broken in its course by foaming cascades and boiling 
whirlpools, but rather the quiet meadow Btream, straighl and 
even in its course, flowing gently through fields brighl with 

flowers and grass and growing crops. 

With genuine pleasure Governor Scales approached the 
close of bis term and the end of his political life. Thirty- 
seven years of bis life he bad given to the service of bis 
people in peace and in war. Signally honored by them, he 
bad always rewarded their confidence with signal service. 
Further political honors had no attraction for him, but he 
looked forward with great yearning to the quiet joys of 
friends and family and home. Surrendering without regret 
the honors of bigb public station be adopted Greensboro as 
bis home, and in that city spent the remaining years of his 
life happy in the honor of his people and the love of his 
friends, but happier still in the quiet circle about his own 
fireside. Himself, his wife, and an orphan niece — whom 
be bad adopted — composed this happy home circle.* Mrs. 
Scales was the daughter of a distinguished family — daughter 
of Colonel Archibald Henderson, granddaughter of Chief 
Justice Leonard Henderson and great granddaughter of .fudge 
Richard Henderson — famous names all in the history of 
three great States. Honored and loved by a devoted fam- 
ily, respected and trusted by friends and associates, promoter 
of the financial, industrial, and educational life of his com- 
munity, organizer and presidenl of the Piedmonl Bank, rul- 
ing elder in the Presbyterian Church and moderator of 'ho 
Synod of North Carolina, f Governor Scales -pent the lasl 
years of bis useful life in further usefulness to his fellow- 
men. Those closest to him loved him besl and those who 
knew him best trusted him most. Death was knocking at 
his door when the day came fm- the regular annual meeting 

'Governor Scales had no children of his own, but besides his adopted daughter, he de- 
frayed the expenses of the education of ten others. 

tHe was the first layman to be elected to this office. 



32 An bj d Moore Scales. 

of the directors of the Piedmonl Bank, "li was," aaya one 
of them, *';i pathetic scene al the lasl election of directors and 
officers of thai bank to -< <■ every rote casl for the dying man. 
N . . more solemn assurance could have been given by thai 
corporation of its continued confidence in its founder and its 
head, and its unaltered determination thai their relations 
should be severed by death alone." 

Death 'Mine to him February 9, L892, in the sixty-fifth 
year of his age, and he faced it with the same serene courage 
with which he had mel all the other problems of life. "Even 
in his lasl days," says a friend, "when his active mind, worn 
oul by honesl toil, gave way, there were no scenes of violence 
or of strife. His mind wandered over to hi- old home at 
Wentworth. The house he built, the trees he planted, the 
friends of early manhood, loved scenes of bygone days, called 
up by memory's fondesl dream, came back to bid him fare- 
well." S<> died this "model of Christian manhood," leaving 
to the world the inspiring less on of his well-spenl life, and 
bearing with him on his last journey the grateful remem- 
brance of his native State, the love and gratitude of his fel- 
low-counl rymen. 

A people who keep in the forefront of their life men such 
as he whose career we have followed may face the coming 
years with hope and confidence. Those whom the people ele- 
vate to the highesl stations of service and trusl are very apt 
to represenl the prevailing thoughl and dominant character 
of the State. I like to think thai Governor Scab- so repre- 
sented the spiril and character of North Carolina. Be loved 
domestic life, and in North Carolina the home is yel the 
center aboul which the life of the people clings. He was 
pure and clean and true in all the relations of private life, 
and in North Carolina purity and cleanliness and truthful- 
ness are yel the standards by which men's lives are weighed 
ani lie was devoul and godly, and in North Caro- 

lina men vel turn to Holy Writ a- the fountain of truth and 



Alfred Moore Sc \ les. '■'•'■'> 

the guide of life. In his public life he was democratic, and 
in North Carolina the voice < £ the people is .-till sovereign. 
lie w;is sincere, and in North Carolina demagogery -till 
lines an infertile soil, lie was honest, and public life in 
North Carolina has net vet Ken blackened by the mint of 
graft, lie loved North Carolina, and North Carolinians are 
-till provincial enough to magnify and glorify their State. 
lie was loyal to the lag of his reunited country. Keeping 
ever in view the "harmony, peace, and happiness" of all .<(<•- 

tions of his country, joining in the earnest desire of all ^ I 

men everywhere to hush forever the "passions and preju- 
dice s" of the war, disdaining to apologize for his own course, 
or the course of the South, in that war, but willing to tru-t 
for vindication to 

"That flight of ages which arc God's 
Own voice to justify the dead," 

he called upon both sections of his, country to "ignore now 
and forever sectional issues," and to address themselves "to 
the great work of restoring the Onion in heart and soul."^ 
In this liberal and magnanimous spirit, too, may he ever 
remain a true representative of the spirit of the Old North 
State. On tins Memorial Day, dear to our heart- for the 
memories it brings, the spirit of this Christian soldier, and 
the like spirits of his gallant comrades who so freely gave 
of their best blood in the service of their country a- they 
understood it, call to us to give as freely of ourselves to our 
great, reunited Nation, and in the service of thai Natiou to 
think the highesl thai is in us to think, to do the besl that i- 
in us to do, and to bo the noblest that is in us to be. 



*Speech in Congress February 25. 1879. Congressional Record. Vol. VIII : Appendix, 
p. 126. 



